Our Paths Have Crossed
by Ego Amorem Deum
Summary: Guardians have duties. Important duties. What can this blond girl offer when at first glance she seems to live an ordinary life?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: New fanfiction. Tell me what you think. Honest and detailed reviews appreciated. Not quite sure where I'm going with this but I think it's going somewhere good. If you have any ideas or suggestions, throw them at me! I may be able to incorporate them into the story :) I love interacting with the readers. This is a more serious fanfiction but hopefully I can manage some gems of humor. I hope this will blossom into something great and enjoyable.**

The blond girl leaned back onto her hands, legs stretched out before her, head tilted up to the starry night sky. It was windy and cold and she was thankful that she had chosen to wear thick cargo pants and a heavy hoodie.

But still...

Cold or not, she found that this particular spot, at this particular time of morning, was a refreshing break from the chaos that was her life. It was early, early morning, close to two and the city was just dying down. All was quiet in the park though, no party stragglers to be found. Lucy looked back up at the stars and carefully picked out a few constellations. _Ursa Major. Canis Minor. Andromeda. Cassiopeia. Mirfak._ Lucy giggled as Regulus, the brightest star of Leo, twinkled merrily, seemingly directing his cheer to her. It was unusual for Leo to be showing this early in the year but Lucy knew that the stars forged their own paths and she would enjoy his company while she could. It was to bad her only friends were stars that couldn't even talk. Great balls of gas and fire millions of light years away...

But she loved them anyway. She had always loved the stars...

_What if constellations were real,_ she thought. The girl laid back against he solid wood roof of Central Park's biggest playground fort and let her thoughts continue to roam over the endless expanse of stars until sleep stole upon her on silent feet.

O_X_O

The pink haired boy stared down at the sleeping figure. This would be the zillionth time he had watched this girl fall asleep at this playground. He didn't know what her deal was but at least five to six days of the week she was out here watching the stars. At least three of those days she would fall asleep, curled up tightly upon the roof of the park play equipment. The boy, Natsu, watched in grim silence from his perch in the branches of the trees that stood like sentries over the playground's fort.

"Natsu, making a habit of watching pretty girls sleep kind of, sort of, makes you a creeper," came the calm voice of Natsu's companion. The boy pulled at his scarf and blushed.

"I've told you, Happy, it's not like that." Out of the shadows came a periwinkle cat. The cat folded his wings as he landed beside Natsu, curling his tail warmly around his friend's wrist.

"It's just...look at her! I mean," the boy growled, "she's asleep in the middle of the park at two in the morning." The pink haired boy turned away in disgust, his grip on the bark of the branch tightened. Softly he added, "What a careless life she must lead. She probably has no worry in the world." He stole a glance back at the girl; she now was curled up into a slight ball. She certainly was pretty, with shoulder length golden yellow hair that now fanned out about her head like a halo. Even though the jacket she wore was baggy, and her cargo pants with many, many pockets were loose, and bunched up in awkward places, Natsu's keen eye could see she had a curvacious, and soft figure.

"Idiot. She's going to freeze." The words hung in the air unspoken as the October wind whipped his hair about his face.

"Natsu, we don't have long. It is best that we go back before we're caught. You'll have to pick a partner soon anyways, so you won't be able to come back here again as much." Happy gently tightened the grip his tail had on Natsu's wrist. It was a comforting gesture. Natsu smiled sadly down at Happy.

"Yeah...just give me a minute."

O_X_O

It was just past six when Lucy stirred. She had fallen asleep, again. Thankfully, she had woken up before nine so she had time to go home and shower before work. With a small fist, she gently rubbed at an eye and slowly sat up. A soft swish, and a slight added pressure to her arm made her look down: half hanging over one shoulder and half in her lap was a long, white, scaled-patterned scarf.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: PLEASE NOTE that the Fairy Tail world is called Earth Land and that Fiore is only the name of the Kingdom in which Magnolia Town is located. Make sure you know what Edolas is before you read or you WILL be confused and some things will leave you asking questions because there are certain things I don't want to reveal just yet so have patience. (I do not own Fairy Tail) **

After Lucy noticed the scarf, its presence hung over her like a dark cloud. The soft white clothing item signaled two things:someone had been watching her, and someone had been close enough to touch her. Lucy swore and flung the scarf to the other side of the roof and scooted backwards until her lower back touched the railing. She clasped her knees to her chest and stared at the limp object, eyes narrowed; all previous thoughts of a shower and work were out of her mind.

_'What creeper has snuck up on me...,'_ she thought, shocked. She gave herself a mental kick followed by an actual smack to the forehead for being so foolish as to fall asleep in the park, again. This was getting dangerous apparently.

Lucy did a quick mental assessment of where she was at. Her location was the central park of her home, Rose City, on top of the biggest play fort's neat little 'watch deck' that could be accessed by a small ladder and trap door. She had always called it the roof since it wasn't often that the trap door was actually unlocked by the park maintenance team for the childrens' use. The city's oldest and tallest oak tree was located at this particular spot and its branches hung low, close to the fort's roof, which is how Lucy managed to climb up night after night.

'Maybe that's how the person came up?'Lucy pondered and eyed the overhanging branches suspiciously. 'No, I'm a light sleeper, I would have heard them move about. Even I can't climb up soundlessly on a good night and I wasn't Gymnastic Regional Champion for nothing.' Lucy crawled over to the scarf on nimble feet and hands. Reaching out tentative finger tips, she lightly traced the scaled pattern. The fabric was soft, like fleece, and white; it was long, with a neat row of two inch fringes at the ends. She picked it gently, afraid it might disappear as magically as it had appeared.

When she thought about it, it really was a nice gesture. Nights were becoming colder and the person hadn't exactly molested her. Her clothes were still on, no skin had been showing when she woke up. She hadn't been drugged or stabbed thirty seven times in the chest...

Lucy held the scarf up to her face. It radiated warmth and smelled of soft smoke and bright, welcoming hearths.

_Beep-beep-beep. Beep-beep-beep. _

Lucy jerked away from the scarf and looked down at the device which had made the noise. Her wrist-watch was letting her know that it was now 7 A.M. and she had less than two hours to make it back to her flat, shower, and make it to work. She swore again.

Scrambling to her feet, Lucy hastily picked up the scarf and made a split decision. She folded it neatly, placed it in the corner closest to the overhanging branches just under the railing, then unclasped a necklace: one of two that she wore around her neck. It wasn't much, just a small silver chain that she had bought for herself with her first real paycheck, but it meant something to her and maybe the person who left the scarf would come back and find it. She wished she had something better to give but sighed and placed the chain down on top of the scarf where it glittered brightly in the waxing sunlight.

"Thank you, kind stranger," Lucy said aloud (feeling pretty foolish while doing so) before stepping over the railing of the roof, positioning herself between the incline that met the top covering of the slide and leapt for a low hanging branch; her hands grasped the rough bark and she swung until she had momentum, then launched clear of the metal monkey bars below, landing neatly in the grass beside the trunk of the oak. Practice made perfect and she had been climbing down from the roof this way for a very long time.

O_X_O

Meanwhile:

Natsu strode back to his home, the guild of Fairy Tail. Happy floated lazily beside him. They would check in at the guild then go home for some training. The day was still young after all.

"Hey, Cleaver, did you hear? Rumor has it that some Guardians haven't been returning, even after their shifts are over." Natsu and Happy stopped mid conversation and looked about. Sitting at an outdoor cafe were two men. One, the one Natsu assumed was Cleaver, was an office type. He looked quite well in his black suit and spectacles and the person across from him was garbed in the uniforms of Magnolia's traveling merchant's guild, Makepence. Cleaver waved his hand dismissively.

"Oh, don't believe everything you pick up on the road Hubert. Rumors have gone around about that before but nothing ever came of it. Those Guardians are trained to know what they're doing."

"But its true! I just got back from Shirotsume Town and that's all the towns people talk about! I hear Titan Nose has lost a good mage or two from that."

"Enough, Hubert. If that were so the Council of Mages would have acted upon it. Look, our lunch is here, I want to eat in peace." Natsu waited to see if they would continue, and only left when it was clear that they had said all they would on the topic. He left with a heavy heart. Rumors always managed to hold some form of truth. Natsu looked up at Happy who gave him a concerned look. They would have to talk to Erza about this.

O_X_O

Inside, Fairy Tail was like any regular guild; there were tables to eat at, a bar at the back, and a missions board upstairs. It hadn't been long since the place was remodeled and though it wasn't the same as Natsu would have wished, it was still home.

"Natsu, I'm going to go back to our house for a fish, I'll be back okay?" Happy zoomed around Natsu's head and the Fire Mage laughed.

"Sure, Happy."

"Oi, flame-head," came a cry from across the guild, "what took you so long?" A tall boy was leaning back at the bar, arms up on either side of him, propped back with his feet crossed.

"Am I going to have to take care of your sector also?" The boy who was speaking was Gray, Fairy Tail's Ice Mage. He wore only pants and a smirk on his face. Natsu's fist became engulfed in flames and he pointed a finger to Gray.

"You, frost-face, think you can do my job better?" Natsu growled. "Don't forget: we have a score to settle!" Gray stood up, hand twitching at his side. A light white-blue glow erupted from his fingertips.

"Yeah, in fact, I know I can do a better job, _trainee._ I could come back in less than half the time you took!"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHhhhhhhh, my job? Better? You can't even dress properly!" Natsu roared and rushed forward, raising his fist preparing for a hit; Gray took his stance, fist in open palm, white-blue light glowing brighter, and prepared for a brawl. From the door of the Fairy Tail guild came a loud _**Ahem**__, _and both Natsu and Gray bounded forward, and... _embraced_?

"Oh-ho Natsu you big joker, there is no way we could ever out beat one another. I was kiddin, yeah, kiddin'. You know how I looooove to just joke with my best friend Natsu," Gray said in forced joy and hooked an arm around Natsu's neck. Natsu, like-wise, had taken an extreme turn in personality and had his arm hooked around Gray's shoulder.

"A-aye!" He gritted out nervously.

Standing before both boys was Erza,and behind her were three new recruits. Erza's scarlet red hair fell softly about her shoulders nicely framing the sister-like smile she was giving both boys.

"I love it when you both get along so well." Erza then turned to address some of the new members and Gray grabbed Natsu by his vest glaring. Natsu had a fist ready to put into action when he noticed Erza had turned back, watching. Natsu threw his hand back in a mock yawn and Gray stared intently at Natsu's vest.

"Nice fabric. Really nice, where'd you buy this?" He rubbed his thumb across the cloth.

"Gray, its time to patrol your sector, go take care of that," Erza spoke over her shoulder and then added, "and Gray?"

"Y-yeah Erza?"

"Shirt."

"Shirt?"

"And pants."

"Ah, sh-" Gray started then rushed off to find where he had misplaced the shirt and pants.

Natsu, in a gloom, had plopped himself down at a free spot on the bar. Everyone was out taking care of missions or clearing their sectors and he had already finished his. Gray would now be leaving to take care of his own shift. He sat there, and studied the three that Erza was about to address. Two were boys; one had a tall, curious hat and was blond, the other had black hair, styled in the most ridiculous way possible. The third member, a girl, was shorter than the other two by a foot and kept her messy blue hair held back by a headband. They looked excited, and nervous at the same time. It was always this way with the newbs. Natsu, head on the bar top, listened to Erza give the same speech she always gave (when she was there. When she wasn't, Natsu and the guild usually initiated new comers with a classic rowdy brawl, often ending in the need to replace several broken chairs and tables).

"Welcome to Fairy Tail! We are deeply humbled that you decided to join our guild. Mission boards are across upstairs and we even have dorms for you to bunk in." Erza stopped short when she saw the blue haired girl had raised her hand.

"Yes?"

"What did you mean, when you told that Ice Mage, to patrol his sector? Do we have to do that?" Erza cocked her head to the side thoughtfully.

"No, that is only for Guardians," Erza responded. Levy gave her a tell-me-more look and Erza obliged. "You know of Edolas right? How it was an alternate dimension that bordered our own? Well there is a second dimension, roughly the same size as our Earth Land. We call it Counter Earth. Unlike Edolas, portals through our world to theirs can be opened with the right magic. This, in itself, isn't bad but all Mage guilds have been ordered by the Council of Mages to train more well adapted individuals to patrol over in Counter Earth to make sure that no Dark Mages are crossing over and causing trouble because Counter Earth is not a magical world, and therefor does not have the proper defenses to handle magic." The blue haired girl pondered this and then quipped,

"How do they know where to patrol?" Erza paused, then reached for a Light Pen from Reedus. She drew in the air, two parallel lines: one labeled Earth Land and the other Counter Earth.  
>"Think of them this way: we lay atop one another, in a sense, so if a Magical Portal were to be created from right here in Fairy Tail," she made a dot on the top line, "we would end up in roughly the same place on the other side," she drew a line from the dot down to the horizontal line labeled Counter Earth and dotted it.<p>

"What cities or country side that mirror our Fairy Tail's territory is what we Guardians cover. Sometimes territory lines run through a single city so you could have Fairy Tail patrolling one side of a city and Blue Pegasus patrolling the other. After that, our guild territory is broken down into sectors that our Guardians are assigned to." Erza drew a circle to denote the perimeter of the Fairy Tail guild and then another circle on the Counter Earth line.

"What if you crossed through a portal and ended up somewhere...you didn't exactly want to be...?" The one with the stupid hat, Jet, broke in. Natsu snorted at this. He had heard one horrible story of a mage who had attempted to cross over using his own portal and ended up somewhere embarrassing: the Ladies bath of a fancy hotel resort.

It was always good to know how to set portals.

"Well only licensed Guardians can cross over with their own magic. Regular mages can't learn this type of magic just anywhere. Portals can be manipulated to open the mage to anywhere he or she wishes to be. They do this discreetly because attracting attention could have unwanted consequences. Guardians are ordered to blend in as much as possible and the Council of Mages does keep close tabs."

Another snort from Natsu.

Gray's first mission was a wreck; the ice-face had been patrolling a down town district in his sector when he had 'misplaced' some vital clothing and was eventually arrested by the Counter Earth police. Of course, Gray just cast a portal spell and crossed back over into Magnolia town but Erza hadn't let it go unnoticed. Gray still wouldn't stay in a room with Erza by himself.

"Natsu!" Natsu lifted up his head and glared Erza's way.

"Come here and tell the new comers a bit about your duty!"

"Aw, Erza I don't want-" Erza sent him a scathing glare.

"...to disappoint you so, here I come!" Natsu hoisted himself up from the bar stool and swaggered over to the newbs, arms crossed. The pink haired boy ran fingers through his messy hair and sighed,

"My duty is to patrol my sector, keeping an eye out for anything out of place, such as magical residue or suspicious activity. We don't mettle in the affairs of human criminals though. Council doesn't really like us getting 'personal'. They also don't like when we open portals of our own. We only cast portals in case of emergency. They keep tabs on stuff like that. Instead, we report for our twelve hour shifts at the Town Hall were the designated portal is and they send us to our sector. I just got upgraded so my sector spans half of Rose City and its Central Park." Natsu jammed a hand into his pants pocket and pulled out a small round disk that fit snugly in his palm. It was metallic with gold runes etched into the surface.

He rubbed his thumb across the top and suddenly a holographic projection of his sector shot up. It was like a 3D map complete with projections of buildings, only much, much smaller than the real deal.

"This little thing detects any magic used in my sector and where its at. When it does, it gives off this magical energy that shocks you like a bi-

"Natsu!"

"Right. It hurts very much and sounds like a siren. Anyway, that's my cue to drop what I'm doing and head on over to check out the disturbance."  
>The blue haired mage was in awe and even though they wouldn't admit it the two guys behind her thought it was pretty cool as well.<p>

"You can always train to be a Guardian if you're interested but is a boring job. Ever sine the Guild Wars ended, we haven't had a single encounter in Counter Earth with a dark mage. Sometimes we catch punks trying to sneak into Counter Earth but that's it. Which reminds me, Erza, I need to talk-" Erza cut him short. She wasn't done with him yet.

"Tell them about your partner."

"Erza, I haven't even chosen a partner yet," Natsu murmured, hostile. He didn't like the subject of having a partner; all partners were good for was leaving you to die at the hands of a Dark Mage. Erza gave him a somber look and Natsu looked away, face red. At this moment a small siren sounded and Natsu dropped the disk from his hand, swearing. They really had to fix this shock problem. He knelt down and stared at the projection. A small red dot lit up at Central park.

A call? At a time like this? He had just gotten back from there, too. Regardless, he had to take care of this problem.

"Later Erza! Newbies!" Natsu shouted as he bounded out of the guild. Erza sighed and watched him go.

O_X_O

Natsu raced out of the guild and down the street and to the Town Hall where the portal that would take him to his sector was located. Natsu came busting in through the front door of the Hall. It was a small building with a front desk, chairs for waiting, and a thick red curtain-framed by solid rune-inscribed stone-that had two soldiers standing guard. Natsu ignored the outraged response he received from the secretary for scorching the door (the fourth time that week) and rushed over to the thick red curtains blurting out,

"Rose City, Central Park, North District."

The tallest guard waved a gold-glowing hand over some runes and gave Natsu the go. The Flame Mage didn't wait; he rushed through and held his breath. Going through the portals wasn't painful but it wasn't pleasant. The portals had the same effect on him as transportation except the flash of lights and smell of aether worsened the experience by ten.

Traveling through was over in about ten seconds. Natsu landed sprawled out on the ground. _Ah, that really does get old,_ he moaned to himself, rubbing his head. He waited for the nausea to subside, and the shaking to stop before he stood up and looked about him. He was in the Northern district of the Central Park, right next to the play fort where the blond had been. Scanning with a trained eye, Natsu could find no rip in the barrier. You could always tell where rips were because they left a colorful silver residue in the air, much like a tangible heat wave. The only thing he saw were unoccupied swings and slides.

"That's strange..." Natsu turned to climb back through the portal (which, on the Counter Earth side, was located up in the branches of a certain oak tree) but was stopped by a deep-throated chuckle.

"The Salamander? What luck I'm having today." Natsu whirled around fists flaming. He looked at the man who stood before him. He was tall with greyish skin and a wide smile. He wore only a simple yellowed tunic and his black hair was slicked back. On his forehead he bore the mark of Eisenwald, a Dark Guild.

"You! What are you doing here?" Every muscle in Natsu's body was tensed, prepared to fight.

"Oh, you don't need the details on that." The voice was like oil on water. The dark mage grinned and his fists glowed a dark purple-black. He charged head on and threw up a fist, aiming for Natsu's jaw but Natsu side stepped in the opposite direction and caught the mage's hand in his own. Quickly, Natsu slammed his free hand against the elbow of his opponent in hopes to break it at the joint but his hand went straight through. The evil mage's grin grew wider as Natsu pulled his now slimy hand out of the guys arm. Natsu tried to ignite his flame but the oily coating on his hand was too thick and it just fizzled out. Then it began to burn. Never before had someone's magic countered his Dragon Slayer skills in such a way. Natsu howled in frustration

"What is this?" He let go of the mage and wiped his hand off on some grass but the oil just spread thicker on his skin and so did the burning sensation. This was new to Natsu, because he never had to worry about burns before but this was a whole different experience. It was itchy and painful and he suddenly felt drained of energy. The dark mage punched Natsu hard in the stomach. Natsu's eyes widened and he staggered and fell over. His energy was being drained at an alarming speed.

"If this is all Fairy Tail has to offer then we have nothing to worry about." The man went to kick Natsu but found his foot clasped in Natsu's tight grip. The Fire Mage gripped harder and jerked the leg out so the man fell on his back. He tried hard to cast fire with his free, un-oiled hand but no magic came. In fact, he could feel the source inside him slowly dying down, like a cooling ember. _No need to panic, I'll just beat him with my bare hands. _

But even simple movements were becoming harder to accomplish.

"Scary, isn't it, my magic?" The mage kicked Natsu off of him and stepped back. "I've wasted enough time dealing with you." He raised his fist to strike a final blow but a voice stopped him,

"What do you think you're doing?" Natsu's breathing became more shallow and before his eyes closed shut, he saw a curvacious blond girl running towards them, an angry look on her face. _Oh no, please, not her, don't hurt her._

_**A/N: I just want to thank those of you who have left such wonderful criticism and review :) I love you guys and I really appreciate it! It means so much! While writing this chapter I listened to a lot of HeyHiHello, Carolina Liar, and Snow Patrol so check those out ;) I hope you enjoy this. Get back to me about what you think! Some things differ from the manga so just bear with me, it will all make sense soon. There may be a lot of chapters though since its a huge story I want to tell.**  
><em>


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Sorry for taking so long, school has just started back for me! I hope you like this chapter. I have big plans for these characters and while things may not seem to add up yet, things are going to be set in motion soon, so please stick with me. To thank I have my precious readers Ice of the Kitsune's, Fire, Crystilia217, Senbei, Princcess Happy, Cloverfull, and many many more that I wish I could take time to list here and anonymous, if you're reading, I couldn't private message you to thank you for the reviews so thank you. You guys are great! I wouldn't be a writer without my readers. Thank you guys. Keep reviewing and letting me know if I'm messing up, or if you have any cool ideas that I could do! Of course, I don't own Fairy Tail, and yes the personalities are a bit tweaked, but I am only wanting to go in depth with them giving them a more rounded feel. I hope you enjoy this. Let me know if something is off! Love, Ego Amorem. Of course, I did bring in Igneel. Don't hate me for what happens. Remember, this fanficiton doesn't go exactly by the manga. _  
><em>**

_The room was warm. It was always warm because they liked it that way. Clothes were strewn about and dishes were piled high in the sink but at the hearth the boy and his father sat quite content amongst the mess. The boy was young and had rosy pink hair. He sat in his father's lap and cried in excitement as the man made small figures out of the flames battle in the fireplace. _

"_You're the best, dad! Think I'll ever be half the fire mage you are?" The man chuckled, his darker than black eyes burned with a bright and lively fire deep within._

"_Oh, maybe, or you could be like your mom and not have magic?" The boy wrinkled his nose and looked up at the picture that graced the mantle. The woman was beautiful, stunning with pink rosey hair that fell in soft ringlets about her shoulders. She had a mischievous and head-strong air that her simple smile could not hide. His mother had been impulsive, and Natsu knew that it must have taken a lot for her to sit still just to have the picture done._

"_Mama is great but I wanna be big, like you. You know Dragon Slayer magic. You've been teaching me, you know I have magic." The boy looked into his father's face. It was rugged, framed by wild black hair and calm, always calm. Everything about this man said, strength. This man was Igneel, the strongest fire mage the guilds had ever seen! Some had even whispered that in a past life he had been a dragon..._

"_Big like me?" The man chuckled and ruffled the boys hair. "Natsu, whether you are big, or small, greatness comes from in here," Igneel gently touched the boys heart...and then tickled him. Natsu giggled and rolled around, then jumped onto his father's chest tackling him backwards. He pointed a thumb to himself and declared loudly, _

"_I'm going to be great! And I'll protect everyone I love, and some day I'll challenge you to a fight, and I'll win! And I can do it all by myself!" The boy then scrambled off of his father and to the fireplace. He concentrated hard and threw his hand up. A small dragon formed in the flames and reared its snake-like head up, jaws snapping wide. Natsu shot his fist up in the air in celebration. It was becoming easier every day for him to use magic. But Natsu's celebration ended as the fire grew out of control and burst. Natsu coughed, covered in soot. Igneel's laugh boomed through the room. Natsu growled and wiped the soot from his eyes. _

"_You're getting there but you know," his father pulled him back into his arms, "friends can be the best partners. You can't go through life without your nakama. In the end they will be what gives you strength." Natsu gave his father a snort. His eyes roamed back up to the picture of his mother, and then a glint caused him to look at a shiny set of keys that hung on a nail by the fireplace._

"_Layla. Do you miss your partner, Layla, dad?" Igneel looked at the keys. There were 9 golden keys on a large metal hoop. He remembered when Layla had handed them to him to keep them safe._

"_I do. She was the best partner I ever had, and one of your mother's best friends. No partner I'll ever have will be equal to Layla."  
>"Where'd she go?" Natsu settled back against his dad's chest. He felt a deep rumble come from his father's chest, not unlike a growl.<em>

"_To a far away place. Her husband wanted to take their daughter to his home. Said it was a better place to raise a child." He snorted and a frown set itself deep upon Igneel's face. Natsu had only heard of Layla in stories. He didn't know much about her, just that she had left her position as Guardian in the guild to start a family. He had only been a year old when this happened, or so Igneel told him._

"_Well, it's best we go to bed. I have a long day tomorrow, Natsu. New partner and all." Natsu protested loudly,_

"_But dad, you told me you would never have another partner!" Igneel sighed and shrugged his shoulders. _

"_Can't help that kiddo. Guild master says the Dark Guilds are picking up in activity and it's not safe for anyone to not have a partner. Now, let's get you cleaned up, and your teeth brushed."_

_O_X_O_

_The rain beat down against the ground. It showed no mercy, neither to the old, nor the young who had gathered. It seemed the sky, too, mourned for the loss of one so great, as if it really did understand loss, and the wounds of the heart. Natsu felt that the rain could see into his own heart, but it did not make him feel any better. Numbness set in like a slow disease. It started at his feet and spread up until the only thing he felt was the stinging of the rain against his cheeks. _

"_Poor Igneel. His partner just ran."_

"_Yeah, I heard Igneel would have made it if his partner has just kept the portal open. Guess he only cared about saving his own skin."_

_The whispers burned into Natsu's brain. The truth of it hurt, but he refused to believe it. His father could not have died. Nothing could kill a man so powerful, so strong, so..._

"_He was a great man. The strongest fire mage Fiore had ever seen, Igneel seared his passion into the hearts of us all. A true symbol of friendship, a nakama to the end..."_

_Natsu ignored the rest of the words spoken. He roared in anguish and ran to the front _

"_He's not dead! How can you say that! I don't know who that is but it isn't-" Natsu's cries of rage continued but strong hands held him back. A girl slightly older than him with short scarlet hair pulled him into a hug, and a boy with dark black hair, and dark blue eyes put an arm around his shoulder. Both friends cried softly as Natsu screamed and screamed..._

"Lucy!" Lucy was pushed to the side as the boy with the pink hair let out a roar and came up punching and struggling madly. Lucy's friend had tackled the boy and was holding his own, though barely.  
>"Calm down, calm down!" Loke grunted through clenched teeth. This pink haired punk had some crazy strength. "Kid, kid, you're okay!" The strange boy's chest heaved and he glared wildly around. Above him, a strawberry-blond guy was holding him down by the shoulders. His hair was short and through blue-tinted sunglasses, golden-amber eyes were staring, wide in surprise. Lucy got to her knees slowly and crawled over.<p>

"W-what happened to you?" she whispered. Loke eased off and sat back on his legs. Both him and Lucy looked in wonder. The boy struggled to sit up but couldn't, so instead, he propped himself up on his arm and wiped a shaky hand across his mouth. It was sore, and there was congealing blood on his hand when he looked. That must have been some punch.

"Where is he?" He rasped. Lucy and Loke both exchanged looks. Loke shrugged and Lucy, concerned, laid a hand on the boy's chest and pushed him back down.

"Gone." Before he could protest she gave him a hard stare. "I don't know where to. I came up and he just saw me and Loke and then took off in the direction of Robinson. Whoa-" Lucy was having a hard time holding the boy down. He looked so incredibly livid, Lucy was afraid, but she held firm.  
>"You won't catch him now. He has a good two hour lead on you. What is your name?" Lucy heard a mumble, and leaned in closer.<p>

"What did you say?"

"Natsu. It's Natsu." Natsu groaned again and looked up. Lucy was leaning over him, her soft brown eyes filled with worry. Natsu felt his cheeks grow warm and turned his face away.

"Do you have to be so close?" He mumbled, but she didn't hear the comment. Lucy placed a hand on his forehead.

"You're lucky I came back for my cell phone. Loke, can you help me get him up?" Loke nodded and came over. Natsu protested but Loke slipped his arms under him and lifted him up to his feet. Lucy gently wrapped an arm around Natsu's waist and supported him from the other side. Natsu's stomach lurched. It was sad that motion sickness extended to human transportation as well. He would just have to do his best not to get sick all over the people who had just saved him.

"We'll take you to my house. My dad is out of town for a while so you can rest there." Natsu just stayed silent. The Loke guy was strong. He could feel an enormous amount of energy coming from him, though where he got it all was Natsu's guess. Lucy was smaller and softer. She did her best to help support him and he felt himself go red again. She was so close. The girl he had been watching for so long was talking to him. She smelled faintly of strawberries.

What would he say?

"Thanks," was all that came to mind. Lucy grinned and said it wasn't a problem. Natsu kept his eyes to the ground and let the two lead him to wherever they were going. He felt guilt crush him like a ton of bricks. He had been careless, and his carelessness had almost cost him. He never wanted the death of an innocent on his hands, not when he could have done something to prevent it and the encounter with the dark mage and Lucy was too close for comfort. He felt failure settle in the pit of his stomach like an angry animal. He was supposed to be the strong one, and yet he had been saved. What if that wasn't how it ended? What if the guy hadn't run off?

What if? What if? What if?

Too many possibilities. Natsu shut off his mind to those and instead let his focus roam over to Lucy. That is what he had heard her friend call her. Lucy. _What a pretty name, really,_ he thought. They all hobbled over the grass and onto a sidewalk. His stomach lurched again. Damn motion sickness.

"Found another one, eh Luce?" A plump man called to Lucy from his stall of fresh produce. Lucy waved a free hand.

"Sure did Mr. Figlio." Mr. Figlio shook his head in good nature. A tall woman with thick black curls busted out of a doorway, baskets on her hips.

"Take care, Lucy, dear! Look's like that'un is in a right mess. Mi querida , when will you ever stop bringing home the strays?" Lucy rolled her eyes and gave Natsu a 'what gives' look. He half smiled at her and she grinned wider.

"They aren't strays, Flora. Why, you are always sticking your nose in t' peoples business. Maybe Lucy wanted to bring home the youngin'? He sure looks like he's missed a good night's shower and a meal to boot." That voice came from Teresa, the plump African-American woman of the flat next to Lucy's. Natsu looked around as people all waved with greetings of "Luce! Good to see yah!" and "Look at our Lucy, such a kind girl." Lucy must have been fairly popular, and Natsu smiled to himself at the _niceness_ of this girl. It seemed that a good bit of the people around knew Loke as well. _They must hang out quite often,_ Natsu thought.

Natsu looked down at his clothes instead of the people. They were stained with the dark gray substance from the dark mage and ripped in several places. He was dirty and ached all over. He was sure he looked like complete crap.

"Loke, how did you even know I was in the park? You showed up out of nowhere from behind me, not that I'm complaining of course. I may have needed the help." Lucy had broken the tense silence. Natsu could feel the tall boy shift his weight and tighten his arm around himself. Natsu could have even sworn he felt the boy shift his arm down to touch Lucy's.

"Oh, you know, true love detector. Let's me know whenever you're within a mile of me." Loke flashed a grin at the blond and she gave him a wry look.

"Really now. Some call that sort of thing the signs of a stalker."

"Lucy, you wound me. How could you insinuate such a thing?"

"Well, if the shoe fits..."  
>"Ouch." Lucy laughed at Loke's expression of mock pain. They stopped short of some steps and Lucy looked to Natsu.<p>

"Can you move your legs very well?" Natsu nodded and then they proceeded up the stone steps to the house.

O_X_O

Inside it looked as if no one lived there. Everything was spotless and clean. No pictures hung on the walls and nothing was out of place.

"C'mon Loke, we'll take him to the upstairs living area." The progress up the stairs was slow and painful for Natsu, because the space wasn't very wide so they proceeded up awkwardly. Once upstairs, though, the atmosphere changed. Things were comfortable and inviting. The living area had a fireplace and two large couches and an armchair placed by the hearth. A set of wide glass windows looking over the roofs of some buildings were on the far side right behind the biggest couch. A pile of newspapers lay on the coffee table. Loke helped Natsu to the biggest couch while Lucy went to get some extra pillows and blankets.

"There you go," Loke grunted as he lowered Natsu down. Natsu didn't look directly at Loke but he did say thank you.

"Yeah, not a problem. Listen," Loke sat down on the coffee table and faced Natsu, "I don't know what you were doing out in the park but Lucy is doing you a huge act of kindness by letting you come here. If that freak comes after her," the voice was soft and deadly, "I'll come after you." Natsu turned and found himself looking into a fierce gaze, feral and determined. _This guy doesn't trust me?_ Seething, Natsu shot Loke a venomous look.

"You think I _want _to bring trouble to _anyone_?"

"You aren't normal for these parts," Loke's eyes narrowed to slits, "and neither was that other guy. Lucy may be kind but I won't tolerate anything that endangers her."

Natsu was about to retort with a scathing remark but Lucy's entrance stopped him. It would be disgraceful to behave inappropriately in the home of someone who had taken him in. Lucy spread out a blanket and used pillows to prop up Natsu, who was still red from embarrassment, and took a seat next to Loke.

"I know this is probably strange for you, I'm sorry. You see, Loke and I are used to bringing in kids we find on the streets." She smiled brightly and nudged Loke with her elbow. Loke smiled thinly.  
>"I believe I mentioned my dad is out of town? He's a pretty busy businessman, so you're free to rest here for as long as you want because he's hardly ever home." Natsu looked at her the whole time she was speaking. His steady gaze caused Lucy to blush and she faltered in her speech. Clearing her throat, she changed the subject. "Ah, if you don't mind me asking, who was that guy? What were you doing in the park?" Natsu turned his eyes away out to the window, then turned back, a goofy and funny grin on his face.<p>

"I don't remember."

Loke deadpanned and Lucy frowned slightly.

"Really?"

"Yeah, haha! But thanks, for everything, really." Natsu tried to get up but the bruising on his stomach was bad and bright stars burst in his eyes. He laid back gasping. Injuries had never been this bad and it may be that they truly weren't. It may have been that his magic was so drained, he couldn't recuperate as fast and he only felt horrid. Natsu hoped that his magic would heal fast, but right now, he had to get outside.

"Well," Lucy began, "I have to go to work. I'm already late and I don't know how much longer Valerie can cover for me. Loke, can you stay with Natsu?" Loke flashed Lucy a soft smile and nodded. Natsu didn't want Lucy to leave at all. Whoever this girl was, she was the only thing that kept Loke from having his way with Natsu. Natsu visibly blanched.

"It-it's really okay, there isn't any need for me to stay." Lucy dismissed this notion. She stood up and smiled brightly.

"Really, it's okay. We've had worse cases than you. You know where to reach me if you need me, Loke. I'll pop upstairs to change and then I'm out! I'm sure we have some spare clothes he can change into, why don't you get those for him?" She jumped up and headed for the door and was gone, footsteps pounding up the stairs. Natsu glanced sideways at Loke who had not taken his eyes off the grubby, rosey haired boy. Natsu looked down at his body. He felt very out of place in the room. Everything in the house was fine, and elegant. Paintings graced the walls, and the furniture wasn't a familiar style to him, but the sewn detail looked intricate and painstaking. Compared, his own body was bruised and dirty, but that apparently had not bothered Lucy. Guess she didn't care about material objects.

"So...," Natsu began, "you guys take in people off the street?" Loke leaned back on the coffee table, then thought better of it and crossed over to the other couch and sat.

"Lucy does, and I help her. She has a kind heart. She can't stand to see anyone suffer and I'm guessing when she saw you, she decided to take action."

"Wh-what did she do?"

Loke chuckled.

"She just charged in pretty recklessly. She probably thought she could handle the guy." Loke smiled fondly, "she's used to doing that. Raised up pretty much by herself. Her dad quit being a cop to be a businessman so he could take care of her after her mother died. Wasn't around much, but she had me, and I taught her to fight." Natsu studied Loke carefully and saw the fierce look return to the amber eyes. Obviously, whoever this guy was, he had a huge thing for Lucy and had been in her life quite a while. Natsu clenched his fists.

"Don't mistake me. I'm very grateful but you had best let me leave before any trouble happens. I have friends," his mind flashed to Gray, who was on patrol at the time, "that I can go to. Just don't involve any officials. You don't know what you're dealing with." Footsteps pounded down the stairs and then a door slammed.

"Well, she's out. I'll go get you some fresh clothes. Natsu," Natsu turned to Loke. The boy was standing up now ready to leave the room. "I know how you must feel but trust us. We've been doing this a long time and you're safe. Just rest. We will see about your friend later."

Natsu watched as the boy, who was slightly taller than himself, left the room. Maybe he wasn't so bad after all. He was obviously kind, and his remarks about Lucy earlier had reflected this. He had just been looking out for Lucy when he threatened Natsu. After all, he had told Natsu that they had been friends for a long time. That was something Natsu could admire in Loke: he took care of his nakama.

X_X

While Loke gathered the fresh clothes, and went to get some food for the Natsu boy, he thought the whole situation over. Perhaps he had been too hard on the guy. He had tried to make up for his threat by being a bit more kind but he couldn't get the image of the scene in the park out of his mind, and he knew that as soon as Lucy came home, she'd have more questions. He just hoped that the Natsu boy would come to his senses and stop lying. Loke knew that Natsu remembered. That goofy, dense grin couldn't fool him, and he wasn't sure that Lucy bought it either but then again, if Natsu did tell the truth, how would Lucy react? Would she believe him?

When Loke had come upon Lucy in the park she had been running toward the man with the black hair and yellow tunic. The man had been standing over Natsu, purple-black fist glowing ready to hit him and then...

It had just stopped. When the man had seen Lucy, he stopped and took off down toward Robinson Avenue, the bad part of town. Lucy had stopped by Natsu and hit her knees and he, Loke, was mere steps behind her. Natsu had been covered in a thick oily substance that just ate at your hands; it burned the essence, seemingly. As the man had gone out of sight, the substance slowly cleared up, and the burning went away. Whatever was going on with that guy and his disappearing oily by-product, it obviously had taken its toll on Natsu. He was barely breathing, eyelids fluttering.

Loke had entered the kitchen and began chopping up some nuts and took left over salad from the fridge. He'd at least bring the boy some decent food. He chuckled at the thought of Lucy getting so mad and going to pick a fight with a man she obviously knew she didn't stand a chance against. _But_, Loke thought, spreading the nuts over a leafy spinach bed with onions, feta, and olives, _that's what makes her Luce. _Loke gathered the clothes under one arm, picked up the trey of food and left to go back upstairs. He had taught her pretty well, to defend herself, and her gymnast abilities certainly helped, but she still couldn't best him. Not by a long shot.

"Enough." Loke said to himself. He had been dawdling in the past for long enough. He cleared his throat and entered into the room.

Natsu sat awaiting him, patiently. _What a surprise, I thought he would have skipped out,_ Loke hid the surprise on his face.

"Here you go, fresh clothes and even some food." Loke sat the food and clothes down and shivered. It was only mid-day but it was cold.

"I think I'll start a fire, if you don't mind." Natsu shrugged as if it didn't matter to him, and dug into the food. Loke watched in amazement and then headed off to the fireplace. He struck a match and tried to light the wood. Natsu watched and chewed his food slowly. Some energy was coming back and so he decided to see if that meant his magic was ready to use. It would come in handy if it was since Loke was doing a pretty sucktastic job at lighting a fire.

"Here, let me try." Loke started to protest but Natsu had already pushed himself up. He crossed over slowly and, wincing, he knelt down on one knee. He took the matches from the glasses-guy's hands and struck the match. Nothing. Concentrating, he pulled at the crackling-static like feeling growing inside and struck again. Pushing the energy out to his fingertips, the fire caught on the match and it burst into flame. This didn't bother him, since fire couldn't hurt him at all, but he felt he had to act to keep up appearances because Loke was watching him very closely. Natsu 'panicked' and threw the match into the wood. He made an act of shaking his hand and sucking on his finger, but he watched the flame steadily until it had caught the wood on fire. A merry blaze burned soon, and the pink haired boy returned to the couch to finish his food.

"You certainly have a unique ability," Loke stated. Natsu took a final bite of his food and shrugged.

"No idea what you mean."

"Don't lie. You did something to make the wood catch on fire, didn't you?" Loke had crossed over and stood above Natsu. Natsu felt a good bit of his strength return and decided it was time to go.

"Can you leave so I can change?" Loke's brow furrowed but he complied, not wishing to see the boy change in front of him. He strode over to the door and stepped out, closing it behind him. Natsu grabbed the clothes and strode over to the window. He quickly unlatched the lock, threw it open and jumped out.

O_X_O

"Can you be a bit more gentle?" Natsu grimaced as a periwinkle blue tail wrapped around his midriff.

"Could you have taken any longer?" Happy remarked as they flew up to the top of the roof. Natsu had seen Happy earlier outside of the window and had been trying to escape ever since.

"Sorry, that Loke guy wasn't about to let me leave any time soon. I had to wait, and I got a meal and clothes out of it, so time wasn't exactly wasted." Happy rolled his eyes and sighed.  
>"That Loke guy was a bit bigger than you, wasn't he? Were you scared?" The tease was evident in his voice and Natsu, comically outraged, threw his hands up.<p>

"That guy? Bigger than me? Me, scared? Ha! I could take him, I will take him," he shimmied out of his pants and shirt, "I will take him because there was something awfully wrong with him. He smelled different, full of energy. He knew more than he was letting on to Lucy. Somehow," he paused, "he knew a bit more about me than I like to admit." Natsu got into the pants he had been given by Loke. They were regular, nice jeans with tailored holes placed fashionably here and there. The shirt was collared and dark green.

"This really suits my hair doesn't it?"

"Natsu, really?"

"Right. I don't even have to ask." The last articles of clothing were a nice billed beanie and a darker green jacket.

"This girl really has a kind heart, and a deep wallet. Does she go and buy clothes for everyone she takes in?" Happy asked. Natsu shrugged and jammed the hat over his messy pink hair. Best to go incognito. The clothes made him look less shabby, and the jacket hid the bruises on his arm. A nearby water tap provided a way to clean off the grime on his face and he turned to Happy, all clean.

"How do I look? Like a real Counter?" Happy did loops in the air,

"Aye! Now let's go home!" Natsu stashed his dirty clothes in a corner, crept slowly to the edge of the building and peered over. Loke could be seen standing on the sidewalk looking all around for the pink haired boy, then took off in the opposite direction of the park.

"Good, the park is safe to return to. Let's go." Natsu crept over the side of the building, landed softly and took off, ducking and dodging behind stoops just in case Loke turned around and saw him.

"So how did you get here?" Happy had turned into a regular cat and was bounding beside Natsu.

"When I came back from our house, Erza told me you had left to go to check up on an alarm and hadn't returned. She was worried and opened a portal for me and well here I am. I just followed my nose." Natsu grinned haphazardly at Happy and shot him a thumbs up.

"Great job, Happy!"

**a/n: I always try and private message my reviewers to thank them for their criticism and feedback. If you don't like this then say so, and I promise not to PM.**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Sorry about being so late with the updates. School keeps you busy. I know this is short but I promise the next chapter will be long and enjoyable. I hope you enjoy what I have so far and a big big special thanks goes out to my Beta Reader Emcronia. She's absolutely lovely at what she does; a true and wondrous editor. Love her!**

While Natsu was trying to figure out how to escape from Lucy and Loke, an important meeting was about to take place in order to 'discuss' the situation that had happened earlier concerning the Flame mage and an Eisenwald mage.

Adjacent to Central Park was the sector belonging to the Guardian, Gray Fullbuster. This rather large area mainly contained warehouses that lined the harbor as well as a couple of neighborhoods up to the north. One warehouse in particular was a meeting place of sorts. It was the smallest and most inconspicuous of the ones nearest the harbor. Broken bottles littered outside, and crude graffiti was scrawled along the brick walls. Inside the warehouse were cargo crates of all sizes stacked one atop the other.

In the middle of the warehouse, a single square of light shone from the skylight on the empty stone floor. Suddenly, a bloodied man with disheveled black hair half covering the Eisenwald tattoo on his forehead was thrown into the light. He was garbed in a simple yellowed tunic. Outside the square of light was a semi circle of mages from all sorts of dark guilds. The only sounds heard were the drip, drip, drip of water leaking through a pipe and the whimpers of the man in the middle.

The meeting was in session.

"I-I followed orders. Gorbavich said not to kill any Counters and I d-didn't." The voice was tremulous and small. A figure, taller than the rest stepped forward out of the semi circle, small glints of sunlight reflecting off the piercings on his face. He didn't step into the light, but the bloody man knew it was the leader of this faction.

"I know what Gorbavitch said Baldor, but I also know he said not to make any form of contact with any Fairy Tail mages. You know how those Fairy morons are and if you draw attention, which you did, they'll be on our trail, which they probably are." The bass voice was dominating. It resonated through the warehouse with a frightening calm, interrupted only by the drip, drip, drip of the water from the pipe, which had started to trickle, unnoticed by the others, behind some crates on the far side of the warehouse. The anger was becoming clearer in the leader's voice: the men in the semi-circle flinched at his tone.

"This plan can't be carried out properly if we don't do as instructed."

"H-have mercy, I was only in the area and my thoughts left me. I don't know-" 

"Mercy? Hmm…nope. Dunno what it means. Take him to Gorbavitch." The man's whimpers turned to silence as he lapsed into shock and was drug away from the warehouse by an Eisenwald mage with green hair, and a Naked Mummy mage with a blue trench coat.

The other mages looked on grimly, slightly fearful. This was a lesson for them all. They dispersed the semi circle and left the opposite direction the mages had taken Baldor. No one wanted to witness the carnage to come. In the shadows the leader pinched the bridge of his nose in consternation. He focused on the soft drip, drip, drip of the leak, letting the gravity of the situation sink in.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you enjoyed seeing one of your own getting sent to the 'punishment'."

"I've always been one for the battle. I would have taken care of it myself if I hadn't had orders from above."

"Since when did you follow orders to the letter?"

"Is it your duty to analyze me, or will you say your piece and cease questioning my allegiance? I warn you any form of 'teasing' will result in hell for you, this I promise," the leader snarled, fist balled up.

Wisely, the cloaked mage changed the subject."Do you think our cover is blown? This is a delicate operation; if they catch us interacting with the Counters like this, they'll have the council after us." 

"It's a possibility," the leader spoke curtly. "I think they already may be aware of us, but unsure of a move to make. As long as we can continue to operate underground and profit from the Lacrima cartel we've established here, there isn't much they can do. We've grown to be too big," the leader paused and ran a hand through his wild dark hair and grunted, "but he ran into that Salamander. It won't go quietly for sure. Thoughts, Grandair?"

The Naked Mummy mage, Grandair, also took time to pause then reiterated, "This is a delicate operation and our success depends on keeping Fairy Tail as ignorant as possible. Someone should take care of the Dragon mage."

The leader knew what Grandair was getting at and weighed the situation in his mind. Finally, he spoke,  
>"Yes...send back for Baldor and give him a second chance...," Grandair bowed his cloaked head and left for the door. After a pause, the leader called in a loud voice just before the mage had made his exit, "Just make sure he doesn't cross Gray Fullbuster. This is his territory after all and he'd freeze up any of Baldor's moves. We'll meet up later at Fifth and Straight." <p>

"As you wish," was all the mage said and then he was gone. The leader sighed, jaw set, sunlight glinting off his face. He had a very big burden to carry. Sticking to the shadows he made his exit. 

The drip, drip, drip of the leak stopped. There was a soft swoosh, like silk sliding over water. Behind the crates a lovely blue haired woman with calculating dark blue eyes grew up from the puddle of water. She let the information swirl around inside her mind as the building became silent once more.  
>She spoke softly to herself, "Gray will have something to say about this."<p> 


End file.
